Download the Brochure about the Permanent Diaconate in Our Diocese:

"Call to Serve" - A Video about the Permanent Diaconate in the Diocese of Saskatoon:

Background:

“The permanent diaconate, restored by the Second Vatican Council, in complete continuity with ancient tradition and the specific decision of the Council of Trent, has flourished in these last decades in many parts of the Church — with promising results, especially for the urgent missionary work of new evangelization,” states a 1998 Vatican declaration about the Formation of Deacons.

As with other Holy Orders, the discernment process for Permanent Deacons involves both the candidate and the faith community.

The permanent diaconate is open to married men over 35 years of age, and single men over 25 years of age – but details about how permanent deacons are formed and how they function varies from diocese to diocese.

The diocesan JOY program (Justice and Outreach Year of Formation) has been identified as a pre-requisite for those discerning the diaconate in our diocese, reflecting a strong focus on service and outreach. A diaconate formation committee is overseeing formation for potential candidates in the years ahead.

In 2015, when Saskatoon’s bishop Most Rev. Donald Bolen (now Archbishop of Regina) announced plans to move forward with both the JOY program and the permanent diaconate in the diocese of Saskatoon, he explained how both JOY and the diaconate answer a profound need for outreach and service. “We situated our discussion in the context of God’s call and our response,” he said at the time. “We looked at different models of the diaconate, and eventually experienced a coming together of minds and hearts, as we were increasingly drawn towards a vision of the diaconate that would have as its primary focus a ministry of outreach which summoned the whole Church to reach out in service and compassion to places of great need.”

Men interested in discerning a call to the permanent diaconate in the diocese of Saskatoon are invited to contact Fr. Kevin McGee at (306) 659-5833 or vicargeneral [at] saskatoonrcdiocese.com